


Terms of Endearment

by Marauder_Lupine



Category: Sherlock (TV), Sherlock Holmes & Related Fandoms
Genre: Affection, Character Study, Fluff, Greg Lestrade & Sherlock Holmes Friendship, I don't know how else to tag this, Johnstrade, M/M, Past Relationship(s), There just isn't enough Johnstrade, maybe? - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-24
Updated: 2020-10-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:02:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27174236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marauder_Lupine/pseuds/Marauder_Lupine
Summary: A study in affection.
Relationships: Greg Lestrade/John Watson
Comments: 3
Kudos: 28





	Terms of Endearment

**Author's Note:**

> A character study of sorts.

Greg Lestrade was an affectionate sort. Always has been.

He had called his ex-wife "sweetheart" from the start. They'd been sweet on each other from the beginning, so it seemed appropriate. They were each other's first, serious relationship. It had been their pet name for each other. The word leaves him with a bitter taste now, but it hadn’t always been like that. When his friends had teased him about calling her his “sweetheart,” he just shrugged them off. He wasn’t afraid of sharing their love. He was wise enough now to know that it wasn’t fair to himself to pretend it had all meant nothing.

His last partner, a nice bloke, a solicitor he'd gotten to know through work, was "pal." Theirs hadn't been a very long relationship, or very serious, or at all public. But it was a fun time. "Pal" started as a bit of a joke. They saw each other professionally from time to time, so they used it as a way of privately acknowledging each other in public. They both thought it was rather funny, especially when they used it in front of all of the old wankers at the courthouse who still opposed same-sex partnerships.

Hell. He even had a name for Sherlock. Well, two, actually. When it came to Sherlock, "bastard" and "sunshine" were interchangeable. Besides his ex-wife, Sherlock was his longest relationship to date, so it isn't so surprising really. They'd been through the thick of it, the two of them. They certainly weren't romantic partners, but they were partners of a sort. He supposed, if he didn't think too hard about it, it might sometimes sound like Sherlock called him "Graham," "Garrett," or "Gerald" with a bit of fondness.

But to John, Greg is a four letter word.

John uses various four letter words, and all very liberally. This particular one, he uses just as freely. He says it without hesitation, and regardless of who's around and might hear. They’ve both done their share of hiding relationships for one reason or another, but they both knew this was different. They care for each other, that bit is pretty obvious to just about everyone, so there’s no reason at all to hide. They're partners, and that’s that. Greg has been on the receiving end of the four letter word in public many times; John always says it proudly, with his chest puffed out and his chin held high each time. Greg would adamantly deny it makes him weak in the knees to be regarded so openly. The first time John used the four letter word, casually, in private, while asking him to pass the tzatziki, he says Greg wore a big, goofy grin on his face the rest of the night. Greg doesn’t deny this at all. 

He realized very early on that he quite liked being called that four letter word - “babe.”  
  
It drives him wild in a way he hasn’t felt in years, and it settles him like nothing else. Stumbling into 221 at 3:00 a.m., too exhausted to even remove his shoes after running around all of London, a softly mumbled “come and sleep, babe” from under the covers is all he needs to relax. John calls him this so genuinely and with such affection sometimes, it makes Greg’s throat feel tight and his eyes misty. Greg thinks he falls for John a little more every time he says it. 

It isn’t the most elegant expression; it’s almost childish in a way. Pretty common, too, he supposes. It’s the sort of four letter word that young, dumb teenagers go around saying. For an Army doctor and an old copper like himself, it suits them just fine.

To Greg, John is many things - devoted, brave and strong, clever in all his own rights, stubbornly determined. John is quiet and thoughtful, and absolutely gorgeous. Greg doesn’t think he knows enough words to accurately describe John Watson. He’s almost certain there is no term of endearment that fully encompasses what John means to him.

Greg simply calls John, _my man_.

**Author's Note:**

> Was written hastily, please point out any glaring errors.  
> Leave a comment, but do so kindly.


End file.
